sudden loss of oil pressure in 92 2.3

[91Saleen#15]

I scored a very straight 92 4-banger natchback at an impound auction. I was planning a v8 switch, but then after reading some posts here, I got curious about how the 4 banger would run. So I tried to start it, and to my amazement, it fired right up. It hadn't run in probably over a year. The radiator was dry, so I filled it and ran it for quite a while to get the antifreeze circulating. I remember thinking how smooth the engine was running. Then we decided to drive a mile down the road to fill up with gas. Half way there, the lifters started clattering, and I noticed we had no oil pressure. Brought it back and installed a mechanical oil gauge which confirmed what the electric one had said which was the car has no oil pressure.

The oil seemed thin so but there was no evidence of gas in it. We drained the oil and installed new. The old oil looked reasonably clean -- no sign of metal anywhere. I'm totally baffled as to what could cause the sudden lack of pressure. What drives the oil pump in this engine? There doesn't seem to be any distributor.

 

[TylerDurden]

the screen is probably gloged or the pump is bad

 

[bhuff30]

there is an aux shaft on the drivers side driven by the timing belt. You should be able to access the important parts through the old distributer hole cast in the block. It is on the same side as the aux shaft near the front of the engine. Since there arn't any shavings, I would guess the drive shaft on that gear broke.

 

[91Saleen#15]

there is an aux shaft on the drivers side driven by the timing belt. You should be able to access the important parts through the old distributer hole cast in the block. It is on the same side as the aux shaft near the front of the engine. Since there arn't any shavings, I would guess the drive shaft on that gear broke.

If that's the case, will I have to pull the engine to replace it?

 

[realtripp]

No engine pulling required. Just remove the motor mount bolts, suspend the engine, and get to work.

On Stingers website he has instructions that involve loosening the crossmember bolts. That idea sounds good too, I will probably try that one next.

 

[bhuff30]

Try getting that driveshaft out of the distributer hole first. It may have a key that prevents you from pulling it, but its worth a shot.

 

[91Saleen#15]

Try getting that driveshaft out of the distributer hole first. It may have a key that prevents you from pulling it, but its worth a shot.

But, if the driveshaft broke, there is probably some bad reason why. Don't I need to pull the oil pump to see if it is jammed?

 

[RustBucket]

I don't think they break really, but they do wear out. It's just a hex shaped shaft that runs to the oil pump from the drive. I doubt the oil pump is locked up. There's quite a bit of load on one of those things. I've spun the driveshaft with a drill pre-lubing new motors and it'll really bear down on the drill. Combine the load of the oil pump in action with the fact that the shaft isn't hardened and you end up with a worn out shaft.

Here's something that may sound cheesy, but it works. If the shaft is intact and the ends aren't rounded off, and you suspect the oil pump screen may be clogged, Spin the oil pump backwards with a drill. Spin it a good 30 seconds or so at a decent speed. Drop the drive(the thing that looks like the bottom half of a distributor) back down in and fire the motor back up. If you've got oil pressure now, you've got a clogged screen. If you're not sure which way is backwards, just spin it in both directions a couple of times. You'll know when it starts building oil pressure again. Oil will start to come out of the drive hole.

 

[glowstang93]

This may have nothing to do with your problem, but I lost oil pressure on my 92 one night. I figured it was just the sensor and drove it on home. It was ok when the engine was cold, but as it heated up the pressure started dropping. The cause was the oil pan gasket was deteriorating and clogging the oil pump screen. My mechanic said he had seen this happen before in the 2.3. Anyway just thought I would add my little story on low oil pressure.

 

[Stinger]

I agree that it's probably the pan gasket plugging the pickup screen...that's the same problem my 91 had when I bought it.

 

[91Saleen#15]

I think I have solved the mystery, and it's really a weird one. After I lost oil pressure, I checked the oil and it seemed very thin.... about the consistency of water. It didn't seem right, so I changed the oil and the filter. The filter was on off brand one I had never seen before. The old oil was so thin that we were worried that the oil pump might have lost its prime. We tried running some oil back in through the filter hole hoping it would help prime it, but when we started the engine, it didn't develop any pressure so we shut it off after a few seconds. When we checked the oil drive shaft that comes up through the distributor hole, it turned when the engine was activated by the starter. After we remove the shaft and the gear, we put a 5/16 socket on it and chucked it into a drill. The internal shaft turned smoothly and felt like it was engaged properly to the pump. After running the drill for a while, the pump finally primed, and started showing pressure (we had a mechanical oil pump gauge installed for testing). So, we reinstalled the gear and shaft in the distributor and started the engine. This time it showed pressure immediately. About a minute later, the clattering of the lifters went away. Since then, it has run fine.

A mechanic friend identified the oil filter as being one that was wholesaled widespread to construction companies. We are thinking that the former owner tried to service it at his work, and somehow refilled the engine with hydraulic oil. After he mentioned this, I found medical records in the trunk indicating that the previous ower had been to the hospital for back pain under and evaluation for workmans compensation. The records indicated that he had in fact worked for a construction company.

I've never heard of oil pumps losing their prime before, but maybe this hot thin oil caused that to happen.

 

[RustBucket]

It's gonna happen again.

Ford oil pumps are positive displacement pumps. They don't need to be primed. Spinning the driveshaft with a drill is what I was referring to in my earlier post. Looks like you've eliminated the driveshaft as a problem, now you're probably dealing with trash in the pickup screen. Get to it as soon as possible or you'll be in the same mess I ended up in.

 

[HyYoSilver]

Yep, I agree with the previous posters in that it's probably a clogged pick-up screen, and the problem will re-appear. I had the same thing in my 92, and these model years seem to be prone to clogging. Ford used a sealant on the oil pan instead of a gasket, and it indeed deteriorates over time.

You can fix it temporarily by draining the oil, and pouring in a couple quarts of parts cleaner. Let it sit overnight, then drain the cleaner out and refill with oil. You can also bend a piece of piano wire, and scrape it across the pick-up screen, using the oil drain hole for access.

You have to pull the engine to be able to drop the pan with these engines....

 

[91Saleen#15]

hmmmm.... I'll bet you are right. But, I have just the right tool to find out. I have a 36" flexible borescope. I bought it in a moment of weakness when it seemed like a tool that I absolutely needed. I justified it to my wife by telling her I would be able give myself a colonoscopy. I'll report my findings here.

 

[bhuff30]

I justified it to my wife by telling her I would be able give myself a colonoscopy. I'll report my findings here.

Please Don't tell us about it.

 

[glowstang93]

When they fixed my pan gasket, the engine was not pulled all they way out, they may have done a little moving of it, but not all the way out.